Does our temperament make us prone to Depression?
Temperament is a key factor that guides our attitudes to life events and shapes our behaviour. For example, how excitable you are or whether you tend to withdraw from or engage in social situations — is determined by your genetic inheritance and by the experiences you've had during the course of your life. We call this “Temperament”.
Some people are able to make better choices in life once they appreciate their habitual reactions to people and to life events.
Cognitive psychologists point out that your view of the world and, in particular, your unacknowledged assumptions about how the world works influence your mental health. You develop your viewpoint early on in your childhood and learn to automatically fall back on it when loss, disappointment, or rejection occurs.
For example, you may come to see yourself as unworthy of love, so you keep wondering if anyone cares about you. You may fail to see that your wife made your favorite dish for dinner even though she was busy tending to the baby the whole day. I get upset when my friend does not pick up my calls - a childhood fear of rejection I learnt from my mom.
Or you may be so self-critical that you can't bear the slightest criticism or even constructive feedback from others. You may believe the world is out to “get you” and you may feel a lot of anxiety and rage at someone’s slightest mistake.
Yet while temperament or world view may have a hand in depression, neither is unchangeable. Therapy and medications can shift thoughts and attitudes that have developed over time. Becoming aware of our attitudes and our habitual responses is the first step to bringing about helpful change.
You can learn a few skills (such as stopping rumination - thinking obsessively about a negative event or a possible negative event) that can go a long way in building your resilience towards depression. Mindfulness skills that help us become more aware of our internal situation, cognitive skills to reframe our negative thoughts, body based skills to help us tolerate distress and regulate big emotions - they all go a long way in this journey.
Visit thunai.org often to learn and practice these skills!